A Navigators True North
by Aurora Scarlet
Summary: Luffy x Nami. A different start to Thriller Bark. (This was the very first ff I ever started writing 3 years ago, and I thought I would repost it, and finish it) Please review :)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, I wish I did, but sadly I do not!**

A slightly different introduction to Thriller Bark.

After leaving Water Seven, The Strawhat Crew had been partying constantly, and tonight would be no different. There was a lot to be celebrated though. The successful rescue of Nico Robin, the return of 'captain' Usopp, and a brand new ship crafted by a brand new crew mate. Everyone was in high spirits. Everyone, except Nami.

All of the crew were still in the dining area, having just eaten their evening meal. The moment Sanji began clearing the table, Luffy shouted over to him to bring some sake back from the kitchen.

"Captain, for someone who claims that they're not a big drinker, you've certainly been doing a lot of it lately" Robin declared with a sweet smile on her face.

Luffy just sat there with his trade mark grin beaming back at the archaeologist. He had hoped that if the crew started drinking earlier it would entice Nami to stay at the table a while longer. Her recent antisocial behaviour hadn't gone unnoticed by him.

"The awesome return of the great Captain Usopp hasn't been celebrated enough yet!" Chimed the man himself "Let's sing!"

"That's right, we still need a musician" Luffy remembered.

The sniper continued "Song number 405, Usopp-sama's …"

At that point Nami rose from the table. "I will be in the crow's nest if anyone needs me" she solemnly stated, grabbing the newspaper and heading for the exit.

"Nami-san?!" Sanji anxiously cried.

She turned to face him quickly with a soft smile on her face, hoping it would hide her true mood.

"You've been on look out for the last three nights in a row. You should stay here and relax with everyone. Why don't I take over for you tonight?" The chef proffered.

"Thanks Sanji-kun, but the fog is so thick out there, it's better if I remain sober and sharp. Just in case anything happens. I am the navigator after all." Nami replied, tilting her head slightly to the side to soften her appearance.

No one could argue with her from a reply like that. Much the same as no one would even think to volunteer to cook in place of Sanji, he just wouldn't allow it.

"Okay Nami-swan" cooed the cook "I will bring you a hot drink later"

"Nami, just have one drink with us" the captain insisted. With that said, he stretched out his arm and pulled Nami back to her seat at the table. She accidentally knocked Zoro en route who had retired on the sofa, but it wasn't enough to disturb him from his sleep. As always, his ability to snooze anywhere, and through anything amazed her, and everyone else. Nami kept her glance towards the sleeping swordsman. Hoping the rest of the crew would presume that she was concerned she may have roused him, when in truth, she just didn't want to make eye contact with anyone.

Sanji filled seven tankards with alcohol, he didn't care if Zoro woke up and didn't have one. Especially since he noticed his tangerine goddess had not yet taken her eyes off the swordsman, and her cheeks were a little flushed.

Luffy, who had still not released his grip on Nami, raised his mug to propose a toast. " Nakama!" he exclaimed, and the rest of the crew repeated him in unison.

Nami drank her drink in one, and then untangled herself form her captains grasp. With the newspaper still in her hand, she quickly left before she was stopped again.

"Marimo-bastard!" shouted Sanji, as the heel of his shoe met with Zoro's head. "Don't sleep in my kitchen!"

"Is she alright?" Franky quickly inquired before Zoro and Sanji got into a brawl. Chopper stepped forward, he explained in her defence that Nami had told him that she was having trouble sleeping. That she was overly stressed by all that had happened recently.

That was the truth, she hadn't told him a falsehood. However, she knew Chopper would interpret what she was saying differently to how she actually intended it. Everyone accepted that Nami was worried something might happen, still being so close to Enies Lobby, and she was doing all that she could to prevent it. The sly navigator had covered her tracks. Though she was being a little dishonest, Nami felt content that she had not directly lied to them.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, I wish I did, but sadly I do not!**

Once Nami was in the crow's nest she slumped down on the bench in her usual spot, in-between the telescope and the lantern she'd left up there from the previous night. She sighed and stared at the ceiling. "I hope no noticed I was blushing" she whispered to herself, and then began to wonder if she had acted rudely towards everyone. 'It's a woman's prerogative to be temperamental' she internally assured herself , 'no one will think anything of it'.

After a quick glance around the room, Nami decided it was time to set up for the evening. She began by opening all the windows. The thick fog of The Florian triangle had reduced visibility to around 10 metres. Nami somehow felt that the glass was obstructing her view, as well as dampening her senses. The crow's nest had always made the young navigator feel empowered. Being the furthest point from the ships centre of mass, the effects of even the tiniest of waves were intensified there, and so amplifying her ability to assess her surroundings. Understanding the sea was usually an effortless task. Over the last few days, because her head and her heart were torn in so many different directions she lacked the ability to concentrate, and so she needed that little boost from the crow's nest to just simply do her job.

Nami lit the lantern, but kept its flame low, and set in in the centre of the room. Then she extinguished all the other lights and strolled to the nearest window. She knelt down on the bench and peered into the thick bank of fog. Her mind wandered back to Enies Lobby, and how Luffy was unable to move after defeating Rob Lucci. "Did he fight that hard for me?" she thought to her self, "and with Vivi, he was unconscious for three days after defeating Crocodile"

A single tear ran down her left cheek. It quickly helped her snap back to reality. Nami got up from the bench, wiped away the tear with the back of her hand, and briefly looked through the remaining windows to finish the first round of her sentry. She knew it was quite a hopeless task to try and spot an approaching enemy through the fog, but she tried nonetheless, just in case. With nothing at all visible, on what should be the horizon, Nami grabbed the lantern and returned to the bench to read her paper.

"Still nothing about Enies Lobby" Nami said aloud. The very mention of that place made her heart sink. She hated herself for being jealous of Robin, and was trying desperately not to take it out on the archaeologist. Nami had tried at first to act as though everything was normal, even if she was a little more short tempered than usual. When she realised she was paying close attention to how Luffy interacted with the rest of the crew, Nami knew she had a few internal answers to discover. Voluntary solitude wasn't the greatest of solutions, but being with everyone meant her train of thought was often disrupted, she needed an answer, and soon.

Nami stood up and quickly looked through each of the windows again. Nothing had changed where the fog was concerned, though Zoro could now be seen sleeping on the lawn deck, and Usopp was pushing Chopper on the swing. The navigator sat back down and continued to read the paper from earlier. Obituaries, was the next section. Nami had no intention of reading them, but one caught her eye. "In my compass-less digression, you gave me a sense of direction" a widower had written about his late wife. It reminded Nami about how Luffy had saved her from Arlong. If she hadn't met him, she'd still be hopelessly trying to free her village, and would not have any prospect of fulfilling her dream. 'Luffy gave me a sense of direction' Nami thought to herself.

Adamant to find her answer, she took a deep breath. 'Think back to Arlong Park' she mentally told herself. She closed her eyes and buried her face in the hands. The first thing she envisioned was Luffy standing on top of the rubble that was once Arlong Park. The sun light seemed to shine only upon him as he stood there, victorious. "Nami, you are my nakama!" she recalled him declare. The warm memory made her smile, 'He didn't ask me then to join his crew. He claimed me' she recalled. Her smile got bigger, and she removed her face from her hands. "Is that when it all began?" she asked herself aloud, and then quickly became very embarrassed.

"Is that when what began?" Luffy asked her with a puzzled look on his face, and a dessert in his hand.

_The Obituary quote is from 'The First Song On The Tape You Make Her' by As Friends Rust. _


End file.
